CenterPoint Energy named winner of Better Business Bureau International Torch Awards for Ethics

Community Relations Director Jean Krause accepts the BBB International Torch Award for Ethics on behalf of CenterPoint Energy. The company was chosen as a recipient of the award for its commitment to ethical behavior.

MINNEAPOLIS – June 26, 2014 – CenterPoint Energy was named a winner of the BBB International Torch Award for Ethics presented by the Council of Better Business Bureaus to recognize businesses exhibiting outstanding ethical practices. “We are extremely honored and proud of this international recognition,” said Joe Vortherms, vice president of Gas Operations in Minnesota. “This award reflects our employees’ commitment to providing safe and reliable service to our customers and communities every day. We’re proud to say that we’ve been doing it for more than 140 years.”

“The Torch Award judges were impressed how CenterPoint Energy values its employees,” said Mary E. Power, president and CEO of CBBB. “They noted the company’s commitment to ethical behavior, evidenced by the requirement that employees take at least one continuing education course related to ethics each year. The company makes everyone responsible for demonstrating their core values – Safety, Integrity, Accountability, Initiative and Respect. And the judges loved their motto, ‘Operating ethically is simply what we do.’”

CenterPoint Energy has previously been awarded winner in the largest business category of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) of Minnesota and North Dakota Torch Awards Ceremony, which recognizes and acknowledges outstanding ethics, customer service and integrity in all aspects of a business’s operations. CenterPoint Energy was also named to the BBB Centennial Honor Roll, which saluted century-old companies that have supported BBB for most or all of its history.

About the BBB: For more than 100 years, Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2013, people turned to BBB more than 132 million times for BBB Business Reviews on more than 4.5 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at bbb.org. The Council of Better Business Bureaus is the umbrella organization for 112 local, independent BBBs across North America, as well as home to its national programs on dispute resolution, advertising review, and industry self-regulation.

CenterPoint Energy, Inc., headquartered in Houston, Texas, is a domestic energy delivery company that includes electric transmission & distribution, natural gas distribution and energy services operations. The company serves more than five million metered customers primarily in Arkansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. The company also owns a 54.7 percent limited partner interest in Enable Midstream Partners, a publicly traded master limited partnership it jointly controls with OGE Energy Corp., which owns, operates and develops natural gas and crude oil infrastructure assets. With more than 8,500 employees, CenterPoint Energy and its predecessor companies have been in business for more than 140 years. The utility also operates a non-regulated business in Minnesota called Home Service Plus®. For more information, visit CenterPointEnergy.com.